08 March 2013

Extra kilos may lead to enlarged heart

Carrying around excess body weight, particularly in early adulthood, can result in a dangerously enlarged heart later in life, a new study finds.

Carrying around excess body weight, particularly in early adulthood, can
result in a dangerously enlarged heart later in life, a new study finds.

"There are already multiple reasons to target obesity at a young age, but
this study adds yet another," said one expert not connected to the study, Dr
Eugenia Gianos, an assistant professor in the department of medicine at NYU
Langone Medical Center, in New York City.

"Targeting obesity at a young age is exceptionally valuable to improving
cardiovascular health and this study reaffirms this."

In the study, British researchers assessed the body mass index (a measurement
based on weight and height) and heart health of more than 1 600 men and women at
different time periods in their lives.

They found that those who were overweight throughout their lives were much
more likely to have increases in the heart's left ventricular mass and relative
wall thickness. Both of these are strong and independent predictors of
cardiovascular disease and death, the researchers said.

Increased risk of heart attack and stroke

However, the earlier in life that a person became overweight, the greater the
increase in his or her heart size later in life.

For example, the hearts of people who were overweight beginning in their 20s
were 7% heavier than the hearts of people who became overweight in their 60s,
according to the study scheduled for presentation Thursday at an annual meeting
of the American College of Cardiology (ACC), in San Francisco.

"Being overweight in your 20s can have detrimental effects on the heart 40
years in the future, especially if you keep the weight on over the years," lead
investigator Arjun Ghosh, a clinical research fellow at the International Centre
for Circulatory Health of Britain's National Heart and Lung Institute, said in
an ACC news release.

"And we know from other studies that even if we take away or account for high
blood pressure, diabetes or other risk factors for heart disease, somebody with
a bigger heart muscle is more likely to have a heart attack, die or have other
problems, such as stroke."

Prevent obesity, promote healthy lifestyle

The study results come from 44 years of data and few, if any, other studies
have been able to examine the connection between body weight and heart size over
such a long time period, added Ghosh, who is also with the UK Medical Research
Council's Unit for Lifelong Health and Aging.

Dr Suzanne Steinbaum is a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital, in
New York City. She explained that "the effects of being overweight are not
simply increasing heart risk factors, but also in increasing the amount of work
the heart has to do, which results in hypertrophy of the heart muscle. In time,
this can result in a cardiomyopathy and worse outcomes".

This may be especially important in youth, Ghosh said.

"Our findings add to the wealth of evidence that obesity and being overweight
from a young age is not good, and provide yet another reason why we need to
focus on preventing obesity and promoting a healthy lifestyle," Ghosh said.

"Being overweight is a significant risk factor for heart disease, and
worldwide, people seem to be becoming overweight at younger and younger
ages."

He noted that one-third of school-aged children in North America are
overweight, with an increasing number of children carrying excess pounds when
they reach adulthood.

Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and
conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed
journal.

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